Circular-knitting machine.



W. SPIERS. CIRCULAR KNITTING MAGBINE.

APPLICATION FILED APK.29, 1910.

Patented Dec. 9, 1913.

UNTTED TATE PATENT @FFTCE.

WILLIAM SPIERS, 0F LEroE'sTEE, ENGLAND.

CIRCULAR-KNITTING MACHINE.

LOSQSEY.

To all whom. it may concern:

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM Srmns, a subject of the King of Great Britain, residing at Leicester, in the county of Leicester, England, have invented new and useful Improvements in or Relating to Circular-Knitting Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to circular knitting machines and has reference to those of the type having two end-to-end needle cylinders respectively carrying plain and rib needles. In machines of this character it has hitherto been impracticable, as far as I am aware, to form rib loops on more than two adjacent rib needles, the reason being that adjacent rib needles could not by themselves draw sufiicient yarn to form loops of any practical size.

The object of this invention is to so improve a knitting machine of the type hereinbefore referred to as to enable two or more adjacent or successive rib needles to knit by themselves for the purpose of producing ribbed or pearl patterns in the fabric. As, according to this invention, the rib needles will produce ribs on the exterior of the fabric and the plain needles will produce ribs on the inside of the fabric, these needles will be hereinafter referred to as top cylinder needles and bottom cylinder needles respectively.

It is to be understood that the invention is in no manner confined to a knitting machine wherein the cylinders are superposed, as it may be equally well applied to other types of machines having encl-to-end needle cylinders, and the terms top and bottom cylinder are only employed for the sake of brevity to clearly distinguish one cylinder from the other.

According to this invention it is possible for a plurality or the full complement of top cylinder needles which produce the external ribs to knit by themselves if desired, or, for any or all of them, to partly or wholly cooperate with the bottom cylinder needles as may be necessary to produce a desired pattern.

One manner of carrying the invention into effect is by the provision of means which prevent the fabric being pulled up to the top cylinder needles as the latter draw their thread to form rib loops. These means may comprise an internal ring or plate located in the bottom cylinder through which Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed April 29, 1910.

Patented Dec. 9,1913.

Serial No. 558,475.

the knitted fabric is drawn. This ring or plate forms a platform for the fabric so that the latter will be supported thereon and will be drawn off approximately at right angles to theneedles between the ends of the cylinders. Another manner of carrying the invention into effect is by the provision of means in the top cylinder over which adjacent needles in such cylinder may draw sufiicient length of thread to form loops, or which means are actuated to positively draw lengths of yarn between the needles to form loops. These means consist of web-holder blades or knocking over bits, preferably movable, and are located intermediate of the needles in tricks in the end of the top cylinder, said web-holders being actuated by a cam.

The invention will be more fully described with reference to the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 is a sectional View showing one side of the ad acent ends of the two cylinders, the bottom cylinder being provided with an internal ring or plate according to one manner of carrying this invention into effect. Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view of one side of the two cylinders showing the provision of an internal ring or plate in the bottom cylinder and pivoted web-holders in the top cylinder according to this invention. Fig. 3 is a similar view to Fig. 2 and shows the top cylinder provided with slidable web-holders according to another form of the present invention. Fig. 4 is a front view showing the arrangement of the sliding web-holder intermediate of the rib needles and also the cam for actuating the web-holders.

Like parts are designated by the same reference characters in all the figures.

' Referring to the drawings, 1 is the top cylinder, 2 the bottom cylinder and the needles in said cylinders are designated 3 and 4 respectively.

The simplest manner of carrying out the present invention is illustrated more particularly in Fig. 1 and consists in the provision of the internal ring or plate 5 located in the bottom cylinder 2 through which the knitted fabric 6 is drawn by weights or other means in the usual manner. This ring or plate 5 is so disposed within said cylinder 2 as to form a platform or support for the fabric 6 as it leaves the needles and so that said fabric, instead of, as hitherto, being drawn downward relatively to the needles, will be drawn 01f approximately at right angles to the needles between the ends of the cylinders 1 and 2, as shown. It will be seen that, if the fabric 6 passes between the cylinder ends at right angles to the needles, when the top cylinder needles 3 draw the yarn 7 to form rib loops they will pull the yarn through the last loops formed in the fabric, the right angular disposition of the fabric relatively to said needles 3 preventing the fabric from being drawn around the end 8 of the top cylinder 1 toward the needles. The face 9 of the internal ring over which the fabric 6 passes from the needles is preferably flat as shown, but it may, if desirable, be inclined or made angular to carry the fabric more or less toward the top cylinder and so increase the effect before described 2'. e. of preventing the fabric being drawn around the end 8 of the said cylinder 1 to the needle 3 thereof. The said ring or plate 5 is furnished with a central opening or hole 10 through which the fabric 6, after passing over the platform 9, is drawn and conducted through the bottom cylinder 2 in the usual well known manner. The ring 5 may be formed with the bottom cylinder 2, or it may be suitably attached to the interior of the said cylinder (such for example as by screws 11). It will be understood that any other means which will give the same result as the aforesaid ring or platform may, according to this invention, be employed.

Referring now to Fig. 2, another manner of carrying the invention into effect is by the provision of web-holders or knocking over bits 11 in the top cylinder 1 over which adjacent needles 3 in such cylinder may draw sufficient length of thread to form loops, or which web-holders 11 are actuated to positively draw lengths of yarn between the needles 3 to form loops. These webholders, which are employed for the purpose just mentioned and which may, or may not, at the same time serve to prevent the fabric 6 being drawn up to the top cylinder needles 3, are preferably movable, and are located intermediate of the needles 3 in tricks 12 in the end of the top cylinder 1, said webholders 11 being preferably fulcrumed on a rod 13 or in a groove running around the cylinder. The outer ends 14 of the webholder blades 11, project between the top cylinder needles 3, and although the needles 3 may of themselves draw yarn 7 over these blades if the latter are stationary, nevertheless it is preferable that a circular cam 15 arranged in the rib cylinder 1 as hereinafter described engages butts 16 or other suitable parts of the said blades 11 to rock them on their fulcrums 13 so that the projecting ends 1 1 are raised and lowered be tween the hooks of the needles 3 and when moving away from the needle hooks they positively draw sufficient lengths of thread 7 between said hooks (as shown in Fig. 4) to enable the needles to produce rib loops. The said cam 15 is mounted upon a lining 15 located within the cylinder 1, around which lining the cylinder rotates. The lining 15 and its attached cam ring 15 are held stationary owing to the fact that the said lining at its upper end is attached to and supported by the fixed framework of the knitting machine.

Instead of the webholder blades being pivoted as just described, slidable web-holder blades 17 may be located in vertical tricks 18 in the top cylinder 1 as shown in Fig. 3, said slider tricks 18 being located between the needle tricks as represented in Fig. 4. The vertical sliding movement may be imparted to the web-holder blades 17 by a cam 19 (Figs. 3 and 4) similar to the one previously mentioned for actuating the pivoted blades, or any other convenient means may be employed for this purpose.

Although the chief function of the webholder blades 11 or 17 in the top cylinder 1 is to draw yarn 7 between the needles 3, as previously described, yet such blades may, if desired, form knocking over bits as well, and in such case they may when required for this function be moved down by the cam 15 into engagement or close contact with the knocking over bits (not shown) in the bottom cylinder 2 so that the loops of both sets of needles are knocked over in close proximity to each other and thus prevent the formation of open wales between the internal and external ribs in the fabric.

The hereinbefore described ring 5 or internal platform may be employed in combination with the web-holder blades 11 or 17 just mentioned and as shown in Figs. 2 and 3 to eflect the result aimed at by this invention, and it is also to be understood that any other means similar to the said blades may be employed for the same purpose as that for which the said blades are furnished.

What I claim then is 1. In a knitting machine of the class described, in combination, a ribbing cylinder, a plain cylinder, a ring or plate positioned within said plain cylinder, said ring having two faces, one a fiat upper face disposed at right angles to the needles and extending inwardly therefrom for a considerable distance, to form a fiat fabric supporting platform, and the other of said faces extending approximately at right angles to the flat upper face from the inner edge thereof, the two faces of said ring serving to cause the fabric to follow a rectangularly shaped track from the needles whereby backward movement of the fabric by the pull of the rib needles is prevented, web holders movably mounted in the upper cylinder intermediate the rib needles, and means for actuating said Web holders to move the same between the hooks of said rib needles.

2. In a knitting machine of the class described, in combination, a ribbing cylinder, a plain cylinder, a ring or plate positioned within said plain cylinder, said ring having two faces, one a flat upper face disposed at right angles to the needles and extending inwardly therefrom for a considerable distance, to form a flat fabric supporting plat form, and the other of said faces extending approximately at right angles to the flat upper face from the inner edge thereof, the two faces of said ring serving to cause the fabric to follow a rectangularly shaped track from the needles whereby backward movement of the fabric by the pull of the rib needles is prevented, said ribbing cylinder being provided with tricks intermediate the rib needles, web holders pivotally mounted in said tricks, whereby said web holders will have a rocking movement between the hooks of said rib needles, and a cam operatively associated with said web holders to actuate the same.

3. In a knitting machine of the class described, in combination, a ribbing cylinder,

a plain cylinder, a ring or plate positioned within said plain cylinder, said ring having 4 two faces, one a fiat upper face disposed at right angles to the needles and extending inwardly therefrom for a considerable distance, to form a fiat fabric supporting platform, and the other of said faces extending approximately at right angles to the fiat upper face from the inner edge thereof, the two faces of said ring serving to cause the fabric to follow a rectangularly shaped track from the needles whereby backward movement of the fabric by the pull of the rib needles is prevented, said ribbing cylinder being provided with tricks intermediate the rib needles, web holders pivotally mounted in said tricks, whereby said web holders will have a rocking movement between the hooks of said rib needles, and a fixed cam within said ribbing cylinder operatively associated with said web holders to actuate the same.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

\VILLIAM SPIERS. Witnesses:

E. N. LEWIS, GEORGE LESTER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

